South Rand Hospital commemorates TB Day
The hospital has a TB focal point, which can be accessed by the community and staff members. The hospital community is urged to visit the unit for testing.
SOUTH Rand Hospital commemorated the Annual TB Day on Wednesday March 25.
TB is a curable disease if patients test early and take their treatment correctly. This was the message at the World TB Day Commemoration at South Rand District Hospital.
The commemoration of TB Day was graced with the presence of Pastor Kenneth Carew from Full Gospel Church in Turffontein, and the other four strategic stakeholders; Metropolitan Life, Bliss Pharmaceuticals, Wits Research Health Institution (WRHI) and Eye Donation Bank.
Dr Damoyi and strategic stake holders offered different health education facts on the effects and symptoms of the disease and the importance of taking regular treatment.
Dr Mwansa, medical officer from the WRH, said TB does not discriminate and emphasised the importance of testing early. “I urge hospital staff members to support people suffering from TB, as the healing process is very lonely and sufferers need all the assistance and support they can get,” she said.
The hospital has a TB focal point, which can be accessed by the community and staff members. The hospital community is urged to visit the unit for testing.
Although your body may harbor the bacteria that cause tuberculosis, your immune system usually can prevent you from becoming sick. For this reason, doctors make a distinction between:
• Latent TB. In this condition, you have a TB infection, but the bacteria remain in your body in an inactive state and cause no symptoms. Latent TB, also called inactive TB or TB infection, isn’t contagious. It can turn into active TB, so treatment is important for the person with latent TB, and to help control the spread of TB in general. An estimated two billion people have latent TB.
• Active TB. This condition makes you sick and can spread to others. It can occur in the first few weeks after infection with the TB bacteria, or it might occur years later.
